Friday, June 29, 2012

When Gracie and I returned home from our trip to California a month ago, this is what I found:

Yep, a construction danger zone with everything that used to be in my pantry piled up on my dining room table. You can't even see my computer in the corner! To be fair, Robert warned me that the house was a mess. Also to be fair, he cleared most all of the stuff off in pretty short order.

As a point of reference, here is a picture from last year:

The main changes were switching the fridge and pantry and opening up the counter that divides the kitchen and the dining room.

Here are a couple more pictures of how it looked that day:

Robert added that box to the top of the counter thinking it would add more storage. The only downside is that it gives it a less open feel. Robert's idea is (was? not sure if he still wants to) to built a second box next to the wall and putting a fish aquarium in the middle. He has wanted an aquarium for at least as long as we've been married, but we've not had the room for it.

This is the pantry that was pulled out of its other location, cut down to not be so deep (It was so deep that things would get shoved to the back and never found until I reorganized everything.). Robert also lowered the microwave shelf. Before it was too high for me to feel safe or to want to clean it out often.

Here is the box looking from the kitchen. Robert rerouted some wiring and added the plug in. It will eventually have a plate and will look a lot better.

Next Stage of Renovation:

Robert continued working on it and this is what it looked like at the next stage:

More shelves and some of the bottom is closed in. He also added a beautiful tile picture of a pheasant. He has had it since before we were married, intending to put it somewhere in the house. It makes for a unique addition.

More junk on the counter and the stove.

This is the gap between the fridge and the drawers under the counter. I forgot to mention that in order to make the fridge fit, Robert had to remove part of the countertop, the trash can drawer, and the round cubbies that used to hold my rolling pin, saran wrap, and tin foil. The gap turned out to be a good thing, because my stepstool fits in there perfectly! Before, I kept it in my bedroom (so that I could reach the top shelf of my closet), but this is ever so much better! I also like that it's not so obvious to Gracie that it's there. She has not tried to remove it.

Here is my mostly-redone pantry. It has been painted, the microwave has been lowered, rolling wire shelves have been added, and there is a new home for the trash can drawer. Eventually, Robert will add an adjustable shelf above the microwave so that I can have a place to put my saran wrap, tin foil, and wax paper (etc.). I asked for it to be adjustable (up and down) for whenever we need to get a new microwave, so that we can make the shelf fit right over it no matter what size the microwave is. I also want another shelf or something over the trash can drawer.

Current Stage of Renovation:

Robert added facings to the shelves and put on an initial coat of white paint. The water cooler will eventually be moved to the opposite corner of the room diagonally, basically behind where I'm standing to take this picture.

You can see the new arrangement. Eventually, we'll fix up that area above the fridge so that it doesn't look too different from the shelf above the cabinets.

Another view. We added a fifth rolling wire basket. I've organized most of them (that's for another post). I don't like having all the junk on top of the appliances and pantry, but I don't have any other places for them at the moment.

The counters are mostly clear. The little cubby to the left of the plugin holds my straw container and my Chlorox wipes. The larger cubby will continue to hold the knife set, but I will undoubtedly move that little crockpot to another location. Eventually all that stuff piled on top will be gone, and I will only have an iPod boombox (or whatever you call it, I know that's the 80's term!) on top and maybe a knickknack or candle.

I had hoped that Robert would get to work on the kitchen some more today (6/16/12), but he had another project that needed tending to immediately. We have a sinkhole in the back corner of our backyard. It erodes away as it rains, and Robert has put untold amounts of dirt and concrete to fill it up. Part of the problem is that we can't grow grass in the backyard because of the dogs. They are so active that they prevent grass from growing and taking root. He's working on a plan to prevent it from happening if not slow it way down. Anyway, when he was cutting the yard, he misjudged his distance and backed up into the hole, falling in and landing in the hole which was as high as his waist! So, he had to get that filled in today.

Once the new counter is all fixed up (Robert wants to add {plexi-}glass doors to the fronts of the shelves) and everything else in the kitchen is done, the next phase is to convert the utility closet into a pantry/storage area. Most of my nonperishable food items are currently sitting in the garage. They WERE on the dining room table, but I had enough of that and moved them. I also have several other boxes of kitchen stuff that are in the garage loft and stuff in the shed out back. I would like to have easy access to all of it which is why we need the extra storage space.

The utility closet is located on the other side of the dining room wall and is only accessible from the garage. It's a rather narrow room, about 32", so it presents a little bit of a layout challenge, but I believe I have figured out how to maximize the space. I'm very excited about that particular project. Hopefully, it won't be too long before I can share more updates with you.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

I found this lovely surprise in the dryer after drying my husband's work clothes last week. After a minute or two of pondering and investigating, I determined it was a crayon! I posted the picture on Facebook and a friend of mine posted this link for getting crayons out of clothes. Fortunately, the only clothes that were affected were my husband's clothes that he does dirty work in (yardwork, construction, etc.).

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

I am starting a new blog with a focus on learning how to improve photography skills. One of the best ways to learn something is to teach it to others. I hope to help both myself and others become better photographers. I would love it if you could join me in this new adventure!

(I also want to learn how to use WordPress which is why I've decided to host it there instead of Blogger.)

Wow, June is already practically gone! This month is just flying by. I'm not sure what all I'll get to do in the remaining two weeks {This post was written on 6/16/12.}. The toothpaste travel case looks super easy, so I'm pretty sure I'll do that. I don't think I'll do any Christmas projects this month.

One thing we've been working on in the house is renovating my kitchen. My husband spent 60+ hours working on it while Gracie and I were gone to California. It's still not finished, but is already a big help. I will blog on this, perhaps in several stages.

Summer Reading Tips @ A Good Book is a Good Friend (If you love to read and want to find out about good books for your children, read this blog! She has also posted several reading lists for children.)

Friday, June 22, 2012

I set up a quick "game" for Gracie: dropping vinegar into a pan of baking soda. She can't do a medicine dropper really well just yet, so I got a formula scoop. I forgot about tinting the vinegar with food coloring, but she is still having fun with it!

And how do you like the toddler outfit she picked out? Ha - I should start a series on What the Toddler Wore Wednesday! (You won't catch me posting pics of me and my outfits, so why not the toddler?)

May was a very busy month as well. I spent most of the month getting ready for our yard sale. Then, at the end of the month, Gracie and I flew to California for my nephew Austin's high school graduation. We had a great time!

You'll notice in the pictures above that I have a lot of colored duct tape around the boxes. This is the best way I know of to be able to label boxes in certain ways.

The fluorescent pink tape means fragile. In other words, "If this box gets dropped, somebody is going to cry!" (or get mad about the mess!)

Blue tape means "I'm keeping this."

Red tape means books or "You might get a hernia if you pick this up the wrong way."

White tape (not pictured) means stuff for my husband to go through.

Purple tape (not pictured) means stuff for the yard sale.

We had the yard sale for two Saturdays in a row. Some friends of ours from church who live in an apartment came over and put their yard sale stuff in with ours. This worked out great because I had extra hands and eyes to deal with Gracie! Plus the fellowship was nice.

The first Saturday it rained, so we had to have the yard sale inside the garage. We still had a decent turnout. The following Saturday was sunny and hot! We were able to spread out all over the driveway and part of the yard. We got rid of several of the large space-taker-uppers which was a huge help. I now have room in my spare room for a craft table!! (More on that later!) We also have more room in the garage, although it doesn't look like it now because we have more things that have to be dealt with.

I was really shocked that we had so many books to keep, 26 boxes!! What shocked me even more was that only a couple or so had fiction books. I know I'm missing some books that were part of a series. I found a few of them, but not all of them. My mom has a bunch of my books, and my sister-in-law has some, too. We often exchange books from each other as we visit each other.

Even though I didn't get to do ANY of my planned projects in May, I am still happy that we were able to have the yard sale and get rid of a bunch of stuff. We didn't make a whole lot of money, but it was enough for me to have spending money for my trip to California, graduation gift for my nephew, with a little left over for pocket money for a week or so.

I still want to make that Grandma Board, but it's going to have to wait until a less busy time of year.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

A couple of ladies from my church are expecting baby boys. We had a shower for them which was a lot of fun! I gave both of them diapers (I split a huge box of Pampers from Sam's), made the cutest diaper babies, and made a hooded towel. I basically gave them some of my favorite things that I received as gifts with Gracie except for the diaper babies because I'd never seen any before I saw them on Pinterest.

Aren't these the cutest things ever? I had so much fun making them!

They are really easy to make. You'll need diapers, baby socks, and baby washcloths. Separate the socks, and roll one of them up in a diaper. Bundle the diaper with a washcloth blanket, roll up the other sock and place on the head for its cap. Take a sharpie and draw sleeping eyes or glue googly eyes for alert babies. I used a glue stick for the googly eyes and they barely stayed on.

Hooded Baby Towel

This is one of the hooded baby towels I made. I made it just like the one that was given to me. It looks huge on the baby doll, but, trust me, the babies will grow into them all too quickly!

It was a little difficult to figure out how to do the folding and sewing of the main towel. There's a pleat in the back. I can do a tutorial of sorts if you like. Just let me know.

Gracie on Easter Sunday

I wanted to take a picture of Gracie in her Easter dress, but it was torn when she was playing in church nursery. The dress was actually a Christmas dress on clearance. I found it when I was switching out clothes for her back in March. I thought it was too pretty to wait until Christmas. I did get it fixed at an alterations shop, but she hasn't yet worn it again.

Gracie plays with her bubbles.

The neighbor girls came over. LOVE the rainbow and sun flares! Not photoshopped, just a happy coincidence.

By the way, those "spillproof" bubble buckets look great, but ours leaks where the top meets the bottom. I'm too cheap to buy another one, so I don't know if mine is just an isolated exception. Gracie LOVED the plastic Easter eggs. I filled them with candy and gave her one egg a day (but not every day) for a couple of months.

I didn't get to do any Christmas projects. However, I DID get to work on getting ready for our yard sale. More on that later.

3 chicken breasts (can use more if you like, this is a good number for our family)

paprika

pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a 9x13 pan, mix together the first seven ingredients.

Place chicken breasts on top.

Sprinkle paprika and pepper on top of chicken (ok to overlap into rice mixture)

Bake for one hour.

Sprinkle as many fried onions as you like over the entire dish. Bake for 3-5 minutes more or until onions are golden brown.

This makes enough for my husband and me plus enough for his lunch and a snack-sized portion. Gracie was asleep when we had supper and she has not really expressed interest in this meal before. One day she will be a convert!

Friday, June 15, 2012

I have referred to this recipe in at least one other post in the past, but thought I would put it in a separate post to make it easy to find.

Ingredients:

1 cup non-fat dried milk

3/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup bouillon*

4 Tablespoons freeze dried minced onions

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon pepper

For the equivalent of one can of condensed cream soup, mix 1/3 cup dry mix with 1-1/4 cup water. Cook until thick.

*I
couldn't find bouillon in the soup aisle of Walmart. However, I looked
in the Latino section and found some there. This worked out better
because it's a larger bottle of powdered bouillon instead of the cubes
which would have to be crushed and ground up. I used the chicken flavor
since I've never heard of anybody needing "cream of beef soup."

I like to use this for my Chicken and Rice Bake. I will be posting a newly-revised version of that recipe next week. Stay tuned!

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

My identical twin sister and I were born 3 months prematurely. She went to Heaven when we were four days old.

I was named after my Grandma Wilna Pauline (Lee) Bounds and her sister, my great aunt Ava (Lee) Reid, who took her out of the orphanage. My sister was named for our great grandmother Ida Isabelle (Anderson) Bounds and my daddy Claude Winston Gunn. I am Ava Pauline and she is Ida Claudine.

I was a combination of tomboy and Miss Priss as a little girl. My mom likes to tell about how I carried a toy snake in my purse while dressed in my Easter best when I was 6 years old.

I like to eat my fries with mayonnaise. I learned this on a trip to Germany when I was 20.

I do not like to eat tomatoes (nor do I like the smell of tomato plants), but I love most tomato products such as pizza sauce, spaghetti sauce, and salsa.

I went to a secular private school for junior high. Since the 7th and 8th graders took all the same classes (and I did well in them), my dad had them let me skip 8th grade.

Because of #5, the class with whom I graduated (Class of 1989) was not the same class with whom I started school (Class of 1990).

I have not lived in any one residence for longer than 5 years, 9 months. If we live here past August 2013, it will set a new record for me.

My first car was a blue four-door 1983 Chevy Chevette. I sold it for $200 after buying a Mercury Sable (can't remember the year of the car, but it was used as well).

While attending the University of Southern Mississippi, I worked for a husband-wife professor team in the chemistry department for nearly 5 years. I helped them develop high school science experiments and was their "girl Friday" for whatever else they needed.

That job influenced me to major in Science Education with an emphasis in chemistry, physics, and general science.

I wound up teaching science as well as 8th grade computer discovery for seven years at Coldwater High School. Then I taught 2nd-12th grade (all subjects except high school Bible) at Calvary Baptist School in Coldwater.

Every good job I've ever had has required typing. It is probably the most useful skill I have learned.

I worked as a telemarketer while attending Hyles-Anderson College. Although I didn't enjoy the job, it was very beneficial for me as it required me to step outside my comfort zone and learn how to talk to and persuade people effectively.

I do not like thunderstorms (it is storming now).

My favorite drink has always been Coca-Cola even though I don't drink it anymore since I've been off caffeine for almost 5 years.

Since I've been off caffeine, whenever I do have it, it makes me very sleepy for at least one day, sometimes three.

My favorite colors are blue and green and sometimes red and orange. I do not care for yellow or purple most of the time (even though I get complimented when I wear purple).

I taught myself how to read at age five because my mom read to me every day.

I still love to read. Growing up, I would get ten (exactly ten) books from the library every Saturday and would have about half of them read over the weekend.

My favorite childhood author is Laura Ingalls Wilder. I've been to all of the Laura homesites in the Midwest. I would love to visit the Farmer Boy site in New York.

I am somewhat jealous of a friend of mine who got to catch another friend's baby because there were no doctors or nurses in the room. I've always wanted to deliver a baby!

I have lived in the South, the West, and the Midwest. I have been to about 27 states.

When going to a new restaurant, if New England Clam Chowder is on the menu, I usually will get it. So far, the best clam chowders come from Red Robin, Ruby's Diner (in LAX airport), and O'Charley's.

I met my husband in North Mississippi where we were also married, but we had a long distance courtship in the year between. I lived in Northwest Indiana (actually Calumet City IL but I worked, shopped, and went to church in Indiana) and Robert lived in Memphis.

I am a night owl, and I'm definitely NOT a morning person at all. I prefer to be left alone in the morning until I'm fully awake. The only exception is when I'm going on a trip. I can wake up bright and bushy-tailed and ready to go on those days.

It's really hard to come up with 40 things about myself!

When I was learning to walk, I tripped and fell on the linoleum floor and bit my tongue, splitting it in half lengthwise. My mom says if I hadn't had it stitched up, I would've had a forked tongue like a snake. Nice visual, huh? They had to run me to the hospital which was 35 minutes away. Can you imagine holding your screaming, bleeding {fork-tongued} baby for that long?

My grandma taught me how to crochet when I was 7 years old. I don't do it much, but I enjoy making blankets for little ones and especially mini-blankets for babies to hold.

I grew up watching my mom give piano lessons to other children (but never took formal lessons until I was grown) and learned how to play {my brother's old} saxophone in grade school. I love music, but I never did like practicing, so I never progressed very far. Now, I don't even have a piano (and no room for one), and probably wouldn't have time to practice, anyway. I do plan on having Gracie learn the violin in a couple of years and the piano as well.

I have a paralyzed vocal cord that acts up every so often. It just came upon me all of a sudden several years ago. After much probing from doctors, they couldn't find a reason for it, but it was most likely caused by a virus settling in the nerve that goes to that vocal cord. As a result, it can be difficult to sing -- not that anybody wants to hear me sing, anyway!

My favorite childhood Christmas was when I was eight years old. "Santa Claus" brought me a beautiful life-sized doll cradle (which I still have), a table and chairs set, quilt and pillow for the cradle, and red gingham tablecloth for the table -- all handmade by my parents. I also got a new baby doll. Incidentally, this was the last Christmas I believed in Santa Claus. I was not traumatized -- not even really all that surprised even, but I've decided to teach my daughter that it's a fun game we play (same with Easter Bunny and the tooth fairy).

I was saved at age 11 after hearing and understanding the Gospel at a summer day camp. I didn't get baptized until I was 18.

My favorite animals are horses and dogs. We had both when I was growing up.

My mom used to stay in the house when I would ride horses (with my dad) because she couldn't bear to watch me do my stunts. I was quite the daredevil, standing up in the saddle and doing other such things. I was too young to realize I could fall and I guess I kept my guardian angel busy in those days!

When I was in 6th grade, my class went to Rawhide Ranch for a week where we learned some horseriding stunts and how to show animals. I had an almost unfair advantage over most of the kids (city kids in California) since I had been around horses and animals for years before that. Anyway, I won the first place trophy for showing a horse.

I love fruit, almost any kind, but am not a big fan of most veggies. I also don't do mushrooms. I used to tolerate things cooked with cream of mushroom soup, but not so much anymore.

I have always loved playing in the water. My mom took me to swimming lessons at Paul B. Johnson State Park when I was 7. I can float and can move in the water, but I wouldn't be able to save anybody else (except my daughter) if they were drowning.

Summer is my favorite season for doing things, but as I get older, Spring becomes more of my favorite because I can see the regeneration of the earth as trees and flowers bloom.

Growing up, I had different things I wanted to be when I grew up including teacher, wife and mom, truckdriver (my daddy was a truckdriver), and motorcycle cop (I enjoyed watching CHiPs on TV). I became a teacher and I became a wife and mother which are the best choices out of all of them.

You may be wondering why I picked 40 (instead of 10 or 25) things about me. It's because today is my 40th birthday! I can't believe I'm 40. I feel like I should still be in my early 30's (especially with a toddler). People tell me I look like I'm 30, so that's a good thing. I have ALWAYS looked younger than I am. In fact, my first day teaching at Coldwater High School, one of the other teachers told me she almost told me to get out of the hall and back to class! LOL!

I am thankful for the life God has given me. I look forward to living 40+ more years for Him.

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Thank you to all the pinners on Pinterest who have pinned my shadow box! Unfortunately, most of the links do not go to the actual blog post, so I have put this picture on every page so that you can easily find it. Click on the picture to go to the blog post.